Parish roundup: Transgender teen denied Communion; homilies make news

What happens when Mass attendance goes from 95 percent of the population to just 5 percent? Catholic churches get transformed into study halls, cafés, theaters and weight rooms in Montreal, the culmination of the long history of church closures in the province of Quebec.

Was it the chewing gum or that she is transgender? A teenager in Charlotte, North Carolina, is denied Communion, and the reasons why are disputed.

Ever hear a homily that is a collection of right-wing political talking points? Salon writer Mary Elizabeth Williams did, and it triggered a crisis of faith.

Woe to the shepherds. That reading from Jeremiah proved to be a jumping-off point for homilies July 22 dealing with the case of former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick.

Oklahoma Catholics celebrate the first feast day for one of their own, Blessed Stanley Rother, a missionary priest who was martyred in Guatemala.

A historic African-American parish in Philadelphia celebrates an anniversary.

Immigrants are galvanizing the church in Vancouver. Churches are now filled with Filipino and other newcomers to Canada.

Churches are threatened by water disposal fees in Washington, D.C.

A parish in Portland, Oregon, offers assistance to an immigrant asylum seeker.

[Peter Feuerherd is a correspondent for NCR's Field Hospital series on parish life and is a professor of journalism at St. John's University, New York.]

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